It’s Breeding Season!

We’ve officially entered wolf breeding season, which generally runs from late January until late March. Since wolves’ gestation period is about two months long, their pups are born in April or May. Females will give birth or “whelp” in a den and have about 5 pups on average in a litter. Pups will stay with their mom in the den for 4 to 6 weeks while she nurses them, and then start to explore outside of the den. 

One of our past Mexican gray wolf litters following their mom around their enclosure.

This year, we are not breeding any of our wolves. Unfortunately, that means no pups in 2021, but that’s not all bad news. This break from breeding is allowing us to get some habitat renovation work done, as well as focusing on essential projects to ensure that our critical conservation work can continue through this difficult time.

One of our recently completed projects is building fire dens in wolf habitats. Our facility is in an area with a high risk of wildfire, which means we need to be prepared for the worst. Of course, our preference is to evacuate wolves if we are threatened with wildfire. However, if we are not able to evacuate wolves, we want them to be able to shelter in place. The fire den allows them to do so in a fire-proof concrete structure that can save lives.

We’re very excited about our brand new fire dens!

Completing this project means that now all of our wolves have access to these dens not only during wildfires, but every day as another option to shelter, hide, relax, or sleep. Our wolves also enjoy lounging on top of the concrete dens for a nice sun bath. 

Emma demonstrating just one of the ways the wolves interact with their fire dens. She loves to hang out on top to enjoy the view!

The past year has proven to be very challenging, but we are committed to continuing to improve the lives of our wolves every day. With the completion of this project and many others, we will be well prepared for years to come.